I’m not sure that the Tower qualifies for the description “still intact” given the modifications to the orchestra level and the fact that its vertical sign and marquee are tacky replacements. I would guess they were installed in the mid-60s after the theater’s last incarnation as the Newsreel.
A number of entries here describe this theater as having a balcony.
There is NO balcony, only a rear area that rises at a steeper angle than the main orchestra level, and which is separated from the main area by a cross-aisle.
While it’s incredibly fortunate that almost all of downtown Los Angeles' movie palaces have survived to date, wouldn’t it would be great if we could know more about the few that didn’t?
Since the Paramount and the RKO Hillstreet survived into the 1960s, there are pictures and even some personal accounts that describe what they were like. (In particular, the Los Angeles Public Library site www.lapl.org has numerous photos of the interior of the RKO.)
But what about the Majestic and the Criterion? I’ve never seen a single picture of their interiors or even come across a description what they were like. It’s as if they vanished into oblivion.
I may be biased toward my opinion of the Hollywood Pantages by the fact that my mother ushered there in the early 1950s. Working there, she assembled a significant autograph collection in an era when celebrities actually were occasionally to be found at the fabled corner of Hollywood and Vine.
I credit my earliest awareness of movie palaces generally to my mother’s stint at the RKO Pantages. And, though I haven’t been there in the many years since it became a stage venue, I did attend movies there regularly in the 70s and vividly remember it being one of the most sublime examples of art moderne architecture and ornament imaginable. While Los Angeles has many beautiful movie palace survivors, and the Broadway theater corridor will always hold wonderful memories for me, the Pantages is one of the very grandest palaces to be found anywhere.
On a side note, I’ve always been intrigued by the typeface used on the Pantages' vertical sign (as well as that of the Wiltern). (I found out that in typography it’s known as “Hobo”.) Other than those two instances, though, I haven’t seen it used for any other theater signs. Does anyone else know of other examples of its use on a theater?
An unusual element of the layout of this theater is the way the auditorium is set at an oblique angle to the street entrance on Hollywood Boulevard. The auditorium is horseshoe-shaped, and the lobby forms a grand, semi-circular, chandeliered promenade around its perimeter.
I was fortunate enough to visit this theater before it was demolished. It was my first trip to Oakland and I was justly fascinated by the Paramount, saddened by the overlooked Fox Oakland, and impressed by the stretch of Broadway that, at the time, included the retailers Capwell’s and I. Magnin.
I recall going down Broadway and looking up and down the side streets, seeing the T&D’s sign, and saying to myself, “What’s THAT?” The theater was still operating, though I can’t remember if it was porn or action films. The employee I talked to seemed impressed that I was interested in looking around, so I was allowed inside for free.
The most prominent feature of the lobby was an enormous carped ramp that led upwards toward the balcony. It had been crudely blocked off with plywood, through which an entrance had been cut and then padlocked. I asked if I could go up, and they unlocked it for me!
I wonder now if they even had liability insurance! It was creepy. I remember a dusty, moldering bathroom on the balcony level. The balcony itself seemed enormous; I believe it extended very far out over the orchestra.
Before I left, I took a picture of the marquee. If I can find it, I will upload it as soon as that feature becomes available again.
The Roxy burned down in the early 1970s. I remember looking through charred rubble and finding paperwork relating to the theater’s operation by the Bruen company (whose other venues included the Whittier Theater and the Sundown Drive-In).
The theater did have a shelf balcony, though it was not used for seating (at least by the 1960s, anyway). One of the films I remember seeing here was a big bomb called “Maya”, starring Jay North (television’s Dennis the Menace) all growed up.
One of the ground-floor storefronts (the one on the left in the picture) was the Grand Canton Chinese restaurant, which was open right up until the fire that destroyed the building.
During 1976, the Ritz got some new signage that I believe rechristened it the “American Theater”. A bicentennial-themed stage show opened there; it had a short run, and the building was demolished soon thereafter.
This was indeed a modern marvel when it opened. Very space age! If I’m not mistaken, the theater opened with “Zulu” in 1964. I was 8 years old and HAD to go to this new theater — it didn’t really matter what was playing.
One correction, though. There was no balcony in the sense of a shelf that projected out over the orchestra section. I would describe the design as stadium-style seating. The entrance to the auditorium from the lobby was via one of two tunnels that led to the cross-aisle at the rear of the main seating area. From here, there were stairs leading into an elevated loge area from which one had the sense of being in a balcony, even though that was not the case.
In its early years, the Whittwood Theater seemed to be a thriving addition to the Whittwood Mall, which was anchored by a very beautiful and modern Broadway department store. Does anyone remember the sun sculpture next to the mall-side entrance to the store with the inscription, “The windows of my soul I throw wide open to the sun” by John Greenleaf Whittier?
Though I’m familiar with many other Broadway theaters, I never visited the Roxie. Unfortunately, all the photos I’ve ever seen have been of the exterior. Does anyone recall details about the auditorium, such as the design or the decor?
The correct address for the Vista is 4473 Sunset Drive. This is a side street off the intersection of Sunset and Hollywood Boulevards.
I’m not sure that the Tower qualifies for the description “still intact” given the modifications to the orchestra level and the fact that its vertical sign and marquee are tacky replacements. I would guess they were installed in the mid-60s after the theater’s last incarnation as the Newsreel.
A number of entries here describe this theater as having a balcony.
There is NO balcony, only a rear area that rises at a steeper angle than the main orchestra level, and which is separated from the main area by a cross-aisle.
While it’s incredibly fortunate that almost all of downtown Los Angeles' movie palaces have survived to date, wouldn’t it would be great if we could know more about the few that didn’t?
Since the Paramount and the RKO Hillstreet survived into the 1960s, there are pictures and even some personal accounts that describe what they were like. (In particular, the Los Angeles Public Library site www.lapl.org has numerous photos of the interior of the RKO.)
But what about the Majestic and the Criterion? I’ve never seen a single picture of their interiors or even come across a description what they were like. It’s as if they vanished into oblivion.
Ne plus ultra!
I may be biased toward my opinion of the Hollywood Pantages by the fact that my mother ushered there in the early 1950s. Working there, she assembled a significant autograph collection in an era when celebrities actually were occasionally to be found at the fabled corner of Hollywood and Vine.
I credit my earliest awareness of movie palaces generally to my mother’s stint at the RKO Pantages. And, though I haven’t been there in the many years since it became a stage venue, I did attend movies there regularly in the 70s and vividly remember it being one of the most sublime examples of art moderne architecture and ornament imaginable. While Los Angeles has many beautiful movie palace survivors, and the Broadway theater corridor will always hold wonderful memories for me, the Pantages is one of the very grandest palaces to be found anywhere.
On a side note, I’ve always been intrigued by the typeface used on the Pantages' vertical sign (as well as that of the Wiltern). (I found out that in typography it’s known as “Hobo”.) Other than those two instances, though, I haven’t seen it used for any other theater signs. Does anyone else know of other examples of its use on a theater?
An unusual element of the layout of this theater is the way the auditorium is set at an oblique angle to the street entrance on Hollywood Boulevard. The auditorium is horseshoe-shaped, and the lobby forms a grand, semi-circular, chandeliered promenade around its perimeter.
I was fortunate enough to visit this theater before it was demolished. It was my first trip to Oakland and I was justly fascinated by the Paramount, saddened by the overlooked Fox Oakland, and impressed by the stretch of Broadway that, at the time, included the retailers Capwell’s and I. Magnin.
I recall going down Broadway and looking up and down the side streets, seeing the T&D’s sign, and saying to myself, “What’s THAT?” The theater was still operating, though I can’t remember if it was porn or action films. The employee I talked to seemed impressed that I was interested in looking around, so I was allowed inside for free.
The most prominent feature of the lobby was an enormous carped ramp that led upwards toward the balcony. It had been crudely blocked off with plywood, through which an entrance had been cut and then padlocked. I asked if I could go up, and they unlocked it for me!
I wonder now if they even had liability insurance! It was creepy. I remember a dusty, moldering bathroom on the balcony level. The balcony itself seemed enormous; I believe it extended very far out over the orchestra.
Before I left, I took a picture of the marquee. If I can find it, I will upload it as soon as that feature becomes available again.
The Roxy burned down in the early 1970s. I remember looking through charred rubble and finding paperwork relating to the theater’s operation by the Bruen company (whose other venues included the Whittier Theater and the Sundown Drive-In).
The theater did have a shelf balcony, though it was not used for seating (at least by the 1960s, anyway). One of the films I remember seeing here was a big bomb called “Maya”, starring Jay North (television’s Dennis the Menace) all growed up.
One of the ground-floor storefronts (the one on the left in the picture) was the Grand Canton Chinese restaurant, which was open right up until the fire that destroyed the building.
During 1976, the Ritz got some new signage that I believe rechristened it the “American Theater”. A bicentennial-themed stage show opened there; it had a short run, and the building was demolished soon thereafter.
This was indeed a modern marvel when it opened. Very space age! If I’m not mistaken, the theater opened with “Zulu” in 1964. I was 8 years old and HAD to go to this new theater — it didn’t really matter what was playing.
One correction, though. There was no balcony in the sense of a shelf that projected out over the orchestra section. I would describe the design as stadium-style seating. The entrance to the auditorium from the lobby was via one of two tunnels that led to the cross-aisle at the rear of the main seating area. From here, there were stairs leading into an elevated loge area from which one had the sense of being in a balcony, even though that was not the case.
In its early years, the Whittwood Theater seemed to be a thriving addition to the Whittwood Mall, which was anchored by a very beautiful and modern Broadway department store. Does anyone remember the sun sculpture next to the mall-side entrance to the store with the inscription, “The windows of my soul I throw wide open to the sun” by John Greenleaf Whittier?
Though I’m familiar with many other Broadway theaters, I never visited the Roxie. Unfortunately, all the photos I’ve ever seen have been of the exterior. Does anyone recall details about the auditorium, such as the design or the decor?
Speaking of signage … does anyone know when or why the north-facing rooftop sign was removed?